[deanhills]

Well the domain name says post4VPS - not freeVPS, so "Free VPS" is more of a figure of speech.  In all of the literature it clearly says 25 posts and a record of good standing are required to compete for a VPS.   And to keep the VPS 20 posts are required.  So the understanding of a negotiation of posts for VPS is there straight up.

The value in VPS that one can get here far exceeds the time it takes to write those posts.  Imagine a VPS with 8GB RAM, 2 cores, and 100 GB disk space.  How much would that cost in a month and how expensive would the 20 posts be in comparison time wise?  The VPS I have would be a minimum of 25-30 US$ a month.  

But OK with @fChk his standards of posts are sky high and 5-star quality.  So yes, maybe if members were thinking of contributing equivalent substance of posts, that may take a bit longer to do.  But that is not the requirement.  The requirement is a post of at least 2 to 3 sentences and of reasonable quality, the more substance to the post of cause the better, and the added quality to the post will increase the credit rating of the member, however that is not what is asked.  

On the other hand there is also the deeper dimension of being a contributing member of a community of VPS Holders, who like to help one another, and also would like to support the owner, Dynamo, so the business can continue.  If anything should happen similar to freevps.us, it will be a huge loss to me as I really love my VPS.  I also like the quality support from our specialist members and am learning from every one on a daily basis.

[xdude]

For some reason I didn't notice the topic till today. SEO wise forums don't need much SEO since the regular content does that without any help. But Google search algorithm is lot more complex and complicated than it used to be. I wonder the forum structure giving wrong vibes to Google search bots. Because we have about 36 boards under 6 forums i think. Only one forum has the word " VPS " and none has important keyword phrases like free VPS, Free Hosting etc. Word 'VPS' is mention it about 9 boards out of 36. Same goes for board descriptions. I don't see words like Web Hosting, VPS Hosting at all. Same goes for Title tag and Meta Description tag which is too long and says Free VPS too many times plus has no other related phrases. So Google Algo probably thinks this forum is not directly connect to web hosting but just a General Forum with web hosting part. We don't even have boards about Web Hosting generally.

This is just an basic SEO audit and i told this long time ago too. But this doesn't mean we have to totally focus on web hosting related. We don't have too many people here who do web hosting full time or have that kind of interest in it. We are looking for a free VPS so we can use it for your interests but VPS is not our main interest. At least its the truth about most of us here. This is why there are most activity in general and off topic threads. Without those off topic threads forum going to have lot less activity.

Another thing is I think the forum need few pillar type pages about important keywords we are targeting. For example a page for 'Free Game Server Hosting' with lots of details about game servers how to get a free one here, or getting cheap one from one of our sponsors and game server related urls, common problems etc. Pages like these will rank well in Google search and attract more new members.

Also a better social media presence. Like details of monthly give aways should be posted in FB fan page etc.

Keyword phrases I tested are these,

Free game server hosting
Free Game Servers
Free Game Server Hosting


Free VPS
Free VPS Hosting
Free Web Hosting
Free Web Servers
Free VPS Providers

There are 3 sites which claim to offer free games servers and these rank high in all these keyword phrases.

[fitkoh]

But OK with @fChk his standards of posts are sky high and 5-star quality.  So yes, maybe if members were thinking of contributing equivalent substance of posts, that may take a bit longer to do.  But that is not the requirement.  The requirement is a post of at least 2 to 3 sentences and of reasonable quality, the more substance to the post of cause the better, and the added quality to the post will increase the credit rating of the member, however that is not what is asked.

Perhaps credit rating could be used  with post count for acquiring a 2nd vps? Rather than requiring more posts, make the requirement for a second vps to have a minimum credit rating for those 20 monthly post?

[tryp4vps]

....... The value in VPS that one can get here far exceeds the time it takes to write those posts.  Imagine a VPS with 8GB RAM, 2 cores, and 100 GB disk space.  How much would that cost in a month and how expensive would the 20 posts be in comparison time wise?  The VPS I have would be a minimum of 25-30 US$ a month......

Actually it shall depend on how much a member can normally earn per hour.

For example, the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the average hourly wage in the United States was USD $24.87 in November 2020.

And it is quite unlikely a member can complete 20 quality posts with around just one hour.

That explains why it seems we do not have active member from the U.S.

And it should also be the reason why most of our members are not native English speakers in this forum.

[tiwil]

Perhaps credit rating could be used  with post count for acquiring a 2nd vps? Rather than requiring more posts, make the requirement for a second vps to have a minimum credit rating for those 20 monthly post?

I agree but disagree with this. Credit rating can be used to see if a user is contributing to the forum for some sort of time. So the 2nd VPS may only be given to whom that is contributing for the forum for some time. Let's say we ask minimum of 750 or 1000 credit rating. Not much users achieved that, I think. But one who have 750 or 1000 already gave their time to contribute to the forum, either longer posting or much more posts (which mean longer time they're in the forum).

The credit rating should only be used to filter who is eligible for 2nd VPS. One who get 2nd VPS should still post more than the minimum 20 posts. In Free VPS for example they asks for 2x more than the monthly minimum because they have 2 VPS. We probably can ask for another 10-15 posts, this should be considered based on the data. I mean, if we require 40 posts but not enough place to post, then it's very hard to keep the 2nd VPS even though they're really trying to post.

[xdude]

I think our give away process needs to be change. It's working now and its simple that's true but it's not efficient. A change might be benefited by both users and sponsors. My long term opinion was giving 2 vps for a member will be like asking for more trouble and a mess. I still believe it. But in our current situation I think we should consider that because it might work, at least for now.

01. I have always emphasized we need to find ways to make this more beneficial for sponsors. I have bad bad feeling about so many servers staying idle either users or sponsors having any benefit. Someone can use second server for something. For example maybe I can use one for testing and learning more about CyberPanel or for my Python stuff testing. Also if nobody takes the vps then sponsor not getting much from it other since nobody would promote the sponsor. Maybe for now it would be a win win giving away a second VPS.

02. If we are giving a second vps it must be for temporary use. User has to agree handing it back in a short notice like it we need more vps for next give away for some reason. bigger/better servers should return first since we need a system to figure who should return first if servers are needed back.

03. There should be a fair requirement like 10 extra posts plus sponsor requirements like internal/external reviews, signature links etc. And the give away process should be easy and simple so it won't add extra work load to @deanhills.

04. Second server shouldn't go for anyone who struggle to do their posting quota or regularly doing it at end of the month. If they have hard time doing 20 posts in 30 days then extra 10 posts won't do any help. It will make it even bigger mess. Also it's better have a rule like these 10 posts should be done before 15th of the month.

05. I don't think there will be too many request for a second server since many members have hard time doing even their 20 post quota. But yes, I think we can use credit score to figure who contribute more. That along with number of posts and topics have.

06. I know we have rules about high-end servers like VPS9 that you have to show u have a real use for that vps. I agree with that since it's practical specially in time there is a high demand for servers. But I don't know if its fair for sponsors. I mean lets say someone who has 200 posts has a bigger project and someone who has 1000 posts have smaller one. Now giving it for one has less posts because of his bigger project won't do any good to the sponsor. Because the sponsor would get better exposure from the member with higher number of posts.

Anyway all these have their own pros and cons and sometimes practical issues too. Just what I was thinking about the whole thing.

[deanhills]

I think our give away process needs to be change. It's working now and its simple that's true but it's not efficient. A change might be benefited by both users and sponsors. My long term opinion was giving 2 vps for a member will be like asking for more trouble and a mess. I still believe it. But in our current situation I think we should consider that because it might work, at least for now.

Well in a way we are changing.  VPS Request is still open.  I probably need to close it now.  

I totally agree with the second VPS.  it's no longer a luxury, but a necessity to use it otherwise we are going to definitely lose it, as we already have with VPS 6.  Even if we do it on a trade basis instead of extra posts. Offer other ways instead of posts.  Like create a YouTube video.  Do a review of the VPS. Test a VPS. Like attach a list of ways in which the second VPS can be earned.  That are doable.  Mind you, maybe we could change this whole Giveaway Process not to be attached to posts only.  But to other SEO tools such as creating a Video, posting links, etc.

06. I know we have rules about high-end servers like VPS9 that you have to show u have a real use for that vps. I agree with that since it's practical specially in time there is a high demand for servers. But I don't know if its fair for sponsors. I mean lets say someone who has 200 posts has a bigger project and someone who has 1000 posts have smaller one. Now giving it for one has less posts because of his bigger project won't do any good to the sponsor. Because the sponsor would get better exposure from the member with higher number of posts.

Well there are other considerations too why we prefer to have more mature users of VPS 9 and I don't think we're necessarily not using VPS 9 in the whole.  The majority of VPS9s are used within the VPS 9 Plan. I think the issue happens with VPSs that aren't used in their entirety within their VPS Plan.  We have a few of those.

[fitkoh]

I have always emphasized we need to find ways to make this more beneficial for sponsors. I have bad bad feeling about so many servers staying idle either users or sponsors having any benefit. Someone can use second server for something. For example maybe I can use one for testing and learning more about CyberPanel or for my Python stuff testing. Also if nobody takes the vps then sponsor not getting much from it other since nobody would promote the sponsor. Maybe for now it would be a win win giving away a second VPS.

I think our give away process needs to be change. It's working now and its simple that's true but it's not efficient. A change might be benefited by both users and sponsors. My long term opinion was giving 2 vps for a member will be like asking for more trouble and a mess. I still believe it. But in our current situation I think we should consider that because it might work, at least for now

I've been thinking and feeling a lot the same way.

The only reason I think 2 vps is okay is because it's better than letting them idle.

In my opinion, it would be better to give the vps in exchange for new membership.

 It's true that people come and go and drift away - but this is a way to constantly be adding new members and also a way to at least get good reviews for the sponsors.

I also think it would be good to make the posting requirements a bit more strict. The goal is not to make it more difficult for people to make their posting requirements, but to structure it in such a way that will yield better content that is on subject. A few ideas:

*Whatever people are doing with their vps, they must make at least 1 post about it every month. Talk about the software, what updates you did, how many hits you got, anything related to the things they're doing with their free vps. This is also an opportunity for people to mention the sponsors, and it will make the sponsors feel good to see what people are doing with their products.

*Every month also require 1 specialized post. It can be a review, a tutorial, a resource document with valuable links to digital services they are interested in... but something more than a continuation of someone elses discussion. Have people write about something that is important to them but also related to the forum topic.

As an alternative to making these a requirement, is there also the possibility of adding "weight" to certain things? Could we make it so that a person creating a topic in a particular category (such as review or tutorial) give 2 post count instead of 1? This will encourage new topics of conversation and mitigate any supposed lack of good topics to post in.

[fChk]

The only reason I think 2 vps is okay is because it's better than letting them idle.

I'm not so sure about that assertion, but would love one of P4V sponsors confirm that for us. As a powered-down VPS doesn't exist!

A VPS only exist when it's 1-created and 2-powered on. Thus if it's powered down or it's not even set yet, then it doesn't exit. A VPS is just a process created by QEMU/KVM during the boot up process and the promised resources get set/reserved for it to be used while in a running state. During shutdown, the process representing the VM/VPS gets destroyed and all the used resources gets claimed by the Host once again.

In this perspective nothing is idling from the sponsor's point of view, I would guess, but it's for sure a failed opportunity for P4V service to max out the VPSs usage and the sponsors exposure via the sponsored users' backlinks etc..

I totally agree with the second VPS.  it's no longer a luxury, but a necessity to use it otherwise we are going to definitely lose it, as we already have with VPS 6.  Even if we do it on a trade basis instead of extra posts. Offer other ways instead of posts.  Like create a YouTube video.  Do a review of the VPS. Test a VPS. (...)

I can volunteer for VPS-15 in exchange for testing and submitting a review :-)

VPS-15 being a Hyper-V guest VM is unique in P4V pool and still remains rather puzzling capability-wise.

[tiwil]

I'm not so sure about that assertion, but would love one of P4V sponsors confirm that for us. As a powered-down VPS doesn't exist!

A VPS only exist when it's 1-created and 2-powered on. Thus if it's powered down or it's not even set yet, then it doesn't exit. A VPS is just a process created by QEMU/KVM during the boot up process and the promised resources get set/reserved for it to be used while in a running state. During shutdown, the process representing the VM/VPS gets destroyed and all the used resources gets claimed by the Host once again.

Since the sponsor already commited to sponsor to Post4VPS, they have to spare some resources for VPS at Post4VPS. It's true that the resources are not used when VPS is not yet created, but they have to leave it available for us. So whenever our admin create one it'll go through perfectly.

The sponsors here don't benefit anything with the non-existent VPS but they should spare some. They can sell it to someone else and get money or sponsor it here and someone grab it, then they gain exposure from the holders.

If I'm not mistaken, hoster that uses OpenVZ, for some sort of reason that I don't really know, can use all the resources available up to their limit. On the other hand, KVM cannot. All VPS are fixed and they cannot use other VPS' resources. That's why hoster cannot sell the unused resource that they sponsor to us.